Golden Globe Awards Review: Checking Boxes Doesn’t Make for an Entertaining Show

Sunday’s Golden Globes telecast had the right hosts, the appropriate amount of surprises, some serious moments, several tight races and ended on time. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association and the show’s producers can certainly check all the requisite boxes, but that doesn’t mean it adds up to an entertaining show.

The show started on the right foot with hosts Amy Poehler and Tina Fey‘s rapid fire opening takedown of Hollywood and its wares. They picked all the right notes of the last year, including the Sony hack attack and the allegations against Bill Cosby.

But, it seemed all the fun was front-loaded. And by fun, I mean there just wasn’t enough of Poehler and Fey throughout the ceremony. Call me greedy. I did appreciate the addition of Margaret Cho as a demanding North Korean journalist.

The HFPA definitely lived up to its reputation of honoring new shows and actors for the first time. There were some I cheered for (Gina Rodriguez, “Jane the Virgin,” “Transparent”) and a couple I didn’t like (Ruth Wilson, “The Affair”). But, overall they seemed to get it right. TV is so blessed right now with so much good work that these races can become so close and almost impossible to say any winner didn’t deserve the nod.

It was a tightly-run evening — again, the producers met all the basic requirements. But in the end, there was a spirit of the show that was missing on Sunday. Usually quite the party, Sunday’s telecast felt serious, even flat.

Maybe, it’s the toll of the Sony hack, the allegations against a TV legend like Cosby and the terror attack on Charlie Hebdo that preceded these awards that contributed to sucking out the elements of the boozy party we’ve come to expect: mistaken teleprompter reads, off-the-cuff acceptance speeches and a levity in the stars that allows them to loosen up a bit and let down their hair. It’s a shame, because after the times we’ve just had we could’ve really used more laughs.

19 Best & Worst Golden Globe Awards Moments (Photos)

BESTGeorge and Amal Clooney: Red Carpet PerfectionGeorge and Amal Clooney were the ultimate couple at the Golden Globes red carpet; it was the couple's first big appearance since getting hitched four months ago. Amal wore a custom black Dior gown, which she paired with her own long white opera gloves. Her newly-minted husband put all men to shame with his tuxedo.

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BESTKate Hudson Is White-Hot in Versace The "Wish I Was Here" actress looked fierce walking the red carpet in a fitted, white Versace dress. She presents this evening. When taking her leave from E!'s Ryan Seacrest, Hudson ran into Best Actress, Drama nominee Jennifer Aniston, in black Yves Saint Laurent, causing a sparkling traffic jam of gorgeous.

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WORST Red Carpet Won't Forgive Pregnant Keira Knightley's Chanel Maternity Wear"The Imitation Game" star is preggers and up for a Best Supporting Actress award. Her butterfly-and-feather-print Chanel dress, however, looked more "Little House on the Prairie" than red-carpet ready. Harry Winstone platinum and diamond earrings with pearls could only top off the look. Dakota Johnson scored the Chanel win between the two in a sleeveless, shimmering silver Couture dress.

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BESTAdrian Grenier: The Color PurpleNot everyone can pull off purple, but Adrian Grenier, who played Vincent Chase in HBO's "Entourage," is not just anyone. The actor brought some color to this year's Golden Globe Awards with style in a three-piece purple vested tuxedo with black lapels. Grenier and the rest of the "Entourage" gang filmed their Globes arrival on the red carpet for their upcoming "Entourage" movie.

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BESTJ.K. Simmons Chokes UpThe actor wins Best Supporting Actor for his brusque performance in "Whiplash," then scours the audience for his wife, finding her "hiding behind the cameraman." He thanks her for the usual spousal love and support, "including our adorable -- above-average -- children," he says, getting a laugh and a little teary.

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WORSTJeremy Renner Distracted by Jennifer Lopez' 'Globes'Just read the teleprompter, Jeremy Renner. It was the only thing asked of you. Renner complimented Jennifer Lopez's anatomy as they presented the award for best actor in a Mini-Series or Television Movie. "You've got the globes too," he quipped, to her shocked laugh. He just had to go there, didn't he?

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BESTGina Rodriguez and CW Globes Virgins No MoreGina Rodriguez's win for "Jane The Virgin" was historic for The CW, winning the fledgling network its first trophy, but her speech also drove home how important the win was. "[This award] represents a culture that wants to see themselves as heroes," said the Puerto Rican actress from the podium. It's inspirational, indeed, as the country continues to get more diverse and fictional onscreen worlds still struggle to keep up.

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BESTJill Soloway Honors Her "Trans Parent" During "Transparent" Win"Transparent" creator Jill Soloway thanked the trans community, and gave a special shout-out to her own "trans parent," saying, "I want to thank you for coming out because in doing so you made a break for freedom and you told your truth. You taught me how to tell my truth and make this show and maybe we'll be able to teach the world something about authenticity and truth and love. To love.

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WORSTChrissy Teigen's "Cry Face" Goes ViralThe model's good looks didn't save her this time. Her disheveled "cry face" was at the mercy of savvy social media users. Her face was circulated across social media with witty remarks, even one referencing Taylor Swift. Teigen took the jokes in stride, even recreating her "painful" face with husband John Legend.

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BESTJeffrey Tambor Dedicates Best Actor Win to Transgender CommunityJeffrey Tambor won his first Golden Globes victory for playing Maura Pfefferman on Amazon's "Transparent." He dedicated the trophy to the transgender community, telling them, “Thank you for letting us be part of the change."

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BESTGeorge Clooney Honors His New BrideDuring his speech as the Cecille B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award winner, the new husband took a moment to honor his wife, Amal Alamuddin. "It’s a humbling thing when you find someone to love,” he said. “Even better when you’ve been waiting your whole life, and when your whole life is 53 years … I couldn’t be more proud to be your husband.”

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WORSTThe Show's Background MusicIf there's one area where show organizers saved money, it was on the stock '80s corporate training video music that played in and out of the commercial breaks. How about all that great music from those movies and television shows you're honoring?

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BESTKristen Wiig and Bill Hader Butcher Classic Movie LinesBefore the writing team behind "Birdman" won a Golden Globe, the "Saturday Night Live" alums announcing the nominees pulled off a rarity on an awards show stage: Exchanging funny banter that's actually funny. Aside from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler's opening monologue, their ode to quotable lines found in classic movies like "The Terminator" and "The Godfather," and then completely rewriting them, was one of the best bits of the evening.

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WORSTRicky Gervais Reminds Everyone Why He Doesn't Host AnymoreFormer host came out holding a wine glass and threatening to insult various people in the audience as a callback to his own hosting stint, which was criticized for being too mean-spirited. He then mispronounced Quvenzhane Wallis' name on his way to forgetting to announce the Best Actress - Musical or Comedy winner.

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BESTMatt Bomer Scores First Ever Major Win, Touches Everyone's HeartActor Matt Bomer took home a Golden Globe for best supporting actor for “The Normal Heart.” Bomer, who is openly gay, got emotional when he thanked his husband of three years. “To my husband, Simon Halls, and our three kids, Kit, Walker, Henry, I love you putting up with me when I was 130 pounds and really grumpy when you ate pizza in front of me,” he said. Bomer lost 40 pounds for his role, playing a closeted gay man with AIDS in the 80s.

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BESTHFPA President Theo Kingma Stands for Free SpeechThere were pens, buttons, photos and a speech by Theo Kingma. The president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave a rousing speech and noted free speech won't be repressed in Paris or North Korea. His moving speech was met with a thunderous applause and cheers from Hollywood. And to that, it's worth raising a glass again.

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WORSTMatthew McConaughey's Facial HairThis is not what the beard gang is about, Matthew McConaughey. The actor did a disservice to the beard movement with his scraggly facial hair -- for his role in Civil War-set "The Free State of Jones" -- paired with a sleek tuxedo. McConaughey usually impresses with ease, but not tonight. Sorry, McConaughey, role or no, there won't be an "alright, alright, alright" for this look.

HFPA

BESTPrince Drops by for Surprise PresentationFamously shy musician stunned the crowd when he appeared to present the award for Best Original Song. He was soft-spoken, carried a big stick and absolutely commanded the room, with the stars in attendance sharing their looks of shock and awe with the viewing audience at home.

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WORSTNot enough Amy Poehler and Tina FeyIt was their last hurrah hosting the Golden Globes, and we deserved more jokes, and less Margaret Cho. Here's to hoping they graduate to hosting the Oscars next year.

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From the red carpet to three-time hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, the 2015 NBC live broadcast had moments we’ll remember forever, and some we’d like to forget

BESTGeorge and Amal Clooney: Red Carpet PerfectionGeorge and Amal Clooney were the ultimate couple at the Golden Globes red carpet; it was the couple's first big appearance since getting hitched four months ago. Amal wore a custom black Dior gown, which she paired with her own long white opera gloves. Her newly-minted husband put all men to shame with his tuxedo.